


So, You Remember The Dream?

by mothdotjpeg



Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, just a bit of angst tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-03
Updated: 2020-07-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:28:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25054657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mothdotjpeg/pseuds/mothdotjpeg
Summary: Nathan surprises Meredith in a CT room, they bicker.(Based after Nathan finds Megan so spoilers)
Relationships: Meredith Grey/Nathan Riggs
Comments: 5
Kudos: 30





	So, You Remember The Dream?

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while ago when I was a hardcore Meredith/Riggs shipper, and although I still love them I do adore Merluca. Anyways I still hope you enjoy this.

“So you remember the dream?” The voice startled Meredith, she had thought she was alone, waiting for her patient’s CT to come up. But now she felt the gaze of someone in the doorway, their body lingering. Their voice instantly recognizable. “The one where they come back to us?” She turned her chair to look at him. “Derek forgets his keys, and Megan goes for coffee.” Nathan was leaning against the doorframe, in his scrubs, holding his scrub cap in his big hands.   
“Yeah, what about it?” Meredith couldn’t help herself, it was just like in the ambulance. But this time, they both knew Megan was alive. And Derek couldn’t be. So she meant it when she asked.   
“Sometimes,” Nathan slinked into the room and crossed his arms as he stood in front Meredith. “they don’t work out.” He squatted down as he spoke, so he was more level with her height. Although now she was looking down at his face, her smile faded.   
“Don’t-” What did he mean? “Why are you in your scrubs?” He laughed a bit, the chuckle that came from deep within his chest. Meredith didn’t understand why he was here.   
“I just had a surgery, I can’t believe you didn’t read the board.” She smacked him, hard in his arm. That made him laugh more.   
“Nathan, why are you here? Where’s Megan?” Nathan’s eyes faded a bit. He wasn’t laughing anymore. “You didn’t leave her, Nathan, I swear-”   
“I didn’t!” He stood up. The room was oddly quiet, not that it was normally loud. It just felt weird to be sitting in silence as Nathan looked at the floor. Meredith didn’t like this. This feeling that they had created. It always felt easy with Nathan, and now he was back. He was back. She opened her mouth to say something but she was cut off. “She picked South California over me.”   
“Don’t say that. Don’t, no, I get to talk now.” Meredith didn’t want to hear his excuses. “In the dream, when I watch Derek walk back inside to grab his keys. I don’t let him leave again. In the dream, he doesn’t need his keys because he’s back. Nathan, you don’t get to leave her. In the dream, we fight like hell. Do you know why we fight? Because we didn’t get a say the first time. I didn’t get to fight for him, I had to let him go. If he walked into my house today, I would. I would scream and kick until he stayed in bed with me all day. I would do anything. You don’t get to give up Nathan. You don’t get to walk away from the hard parts. You did that once before-”  
“I didn’t give up!” Nathan slammed his hand on the desk, and glared at the floor, avoiding Meredith’s look. “You don’t get to say I gave up! Don’t you think I’d do anything to have her back? I tried Mere, but I can’t be there anymore. I belong here,” He looked up at her, moved closer. She pushed her chair back to keep the distance. “she never had the dream. She always knew I was fine.” It was silent for a moment, Meredith trying to figure out what to say. “Is it so hard to believe she isn’t my Derek? I love her, Mere. I love her so much. That’s why I left. She can’t live with me, watching me hate it there. Hate a place she loves so much.” Meredith closed her eyes and sighed.   
“Is she going to come to Seattle?” He can’t just give up, Meredith couldn’t let him. She needed him to fight for something she could never have.   
“She didn’t want to, Mere. Farouk has a life there now, and I. I can’t be part of that life.” Nathan starred at Meredith, trying to read her face. “You’d do it too, you know.” Meredith was quiet. “You’d choose to stay with Zola, and Bailey, and Ellis.” Meredith nodded and sighed. She looked at him, he looked tired.   
“I would, but-”   
“Meredith. I belong here. I belong in this hospital, saving lives. I deserve it. I deserve to do the things that make me happy. And so do you. We need to let go. We need to-” He had reached out for her hand, a hand that had refused to hold his so many times. She moved it away.  
“No. You don’t get to pick me over her. Megan, she’s your once-in-a-life-time love. She’s the person that made your world spin. I can’t be that, Nathan. I just-” Nathan grabbed her hand, pulling her up. They were standing, chest to chest. Her hand in his. She felt like she couldn’t breathe.   
“You won’t let me be that. Why can’t you just let me pick you?” Meredith gave up. She gave up because she missed him. Because she never called, she never picked up. Because them, laying in her bed the morning before the fire, it seemed so long ago. Too long ago. So she kissed him. It took him a moment before he let go of her hand and wrapped it around her waist. Before she cupped his face and kissed him harder. Before they let go.   
She pulled away and looked at him. Nathan smiled at her, the light in his eyes was back. It felt normal, almost. Like he belonged in this hospital, in here.   
“How long have you known?” She had moved on from him so easily, she hadn’t been brokenhearted. She had missed him, but she never thought about it. Until now, when all of it kicked in. Only moments ago she had been thinking about Andrew and Link, and now she had forgotten them.  
“Hmm?” Nathan’s scrub cap was on the floor, his hand tucking her hair behind her ear.   
“That you were coming back.” Meredith stepped away from him and sat back down. Leaving Nathan standing there, in a dreamy state. He bit his lip.   
“Um, two months?” Meredith turned and smacked him in his arm again but harder.   
“Ow!” He grabbed his arm and rubbed it. “Jeez, woman.”   
“Two months?” Nathan’s eyes darted to the floor. “More than-”   
“Look, I had to make sure they’d hire me back here. I didn’t know if Maggie needed help or if she had cloned herself, you never know. And I wanted to talk to Owen first and-” Meredith started laughing.  
“Will Owen ever talk to you again? He seems like a pro at hating you.” Nathan smiled, letting his arm go.   
“Hey, I’m still mad at you. I thought you’d read the board and frantically storm into my OR to yell at me.” He sat down in the chair next to her, looking at her gently.   
“I can still yell at you if you want.” Meredith took his hand in hers and rubbed it softly. She couldn’t stop looking at him.   
“I think I’ll pass, actually.” Nathan looked at their hands.   
“Nathan?”   
“Yeah?”  
“You’re back?”  
“I’m back.”


End file.
